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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28345521">Finally Okay</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/emcon/pseuds/emcon'>emcon</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Hurt/Comfort, Mutant Reader, Reader Needs a Hug, Reader-Insert</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 20:13:37</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,487</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28345521</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/emcon/pseuds/emcon</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>You and Wanda are close friends, her joining the Avengers and you going rogue after Sokovia. But after one terrible night where you expose your powers to the world and get yourself critically hurt, Wanda is forced to face the reality of your mission for revenge, while some of your worst fears come to pass.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Wanda Maximoff &amp; Reader, Wanda Maximoff/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>113</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I originally wrote this on my imagines blog (https://emcon-imagines.tumblr.com) so if you enjoyed this, be sure to check it out for tons more reader insert content. This story is three parts and will be posted over the next three days!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>You barely made it to your front door that night, clutching the place you had been shot even as blood trickled through your fingertips. The night was a haze, one big mistake after another, one bad night in a series of bad nights, bad weeks, maybe just a bad year in general. And you had never been great at coping.</p><p>Your blood ended up on your doorknob when you opened the door to your apartment, left unlocked (<em>of course it was left unlocked</em>). You were almost afraid to turn the light on and begin to evaluate the damage. Definitely some broken bones. There was a sharp pain around your ribs when you took in a labored breath. More cuts and bruises than you could count. And then the bullet wound. <em>The damn bullet wound. </em>That would have to come first.</p><p>It was too dangerous to go to a hospital, hell, you wouldn’t even be able to step foot outside for weeks. Even without looking at the news, you knew they’d all be coming now. Police. S.H.I.E.L.D. Feds. ATCU. More agencies than you could care to name. All because you talked yourself into some stupid quest for vengeance, one more jab at those who had given you your powers in the first place.</p><p>Burning down their lab had seemed like a good start. You didn’t know they’d have security, or in the time you spent trapped inside, authorities would have responded. By the end, you weren’t even sure who was shooting at who, just that you had to get out. </p><p>T-shirt first, cover the wound. Adhesive. Duct tape would have to do. Apply pressure. You turned the TV on the cover the sound of sirens rushing past your apartment and images of the burning building on the screen lit up the dark room. <em>They didn’t see my face. I can still get out of this. </em>Apply pressure. You winced as you unstuck the duct tape from your stomach and pulled it tighter to stop the bleeding.</p><p>“What are you doing?”</p><p>You jumped, almost collapsed at the sound of Wanda’s voice, the adrenaline wearing off and replacing itself with unfettered anxiety and fatigue. She was standing in the doorway of your apartment. “How did you get in?”</p><p>“You left your door unlocked,” Wanda said gently, though she didn’t take her eyes off the mess of a rush first aid job just below your ribs. Her gaze lingered there for a moment before moving to the television, where the same clip played over and over, of your attack on the agents outside the burning building, lashing out like a trapped animal, completely out of control. “You thought you could get away with this?” she asked, almost incredulously, her voice cracking. “I came the minute I saw the news. What were you thinking? You could’ve gotten yourself killed.” She spat out the last word and you flinched, leaning back against the wall for support.</p><p>“You should go,” you said. “Did you tell anyone you were leaving the Compound?” It took you several tries to get the question out, as you fought through the pain.</p><p>“Let me see,” Wanda said, stepping closer, and tugging on your hand, trying to pull it away from the wound you were covering. “<em>Let me see</em>.”</p><p>You cautiously pulled your hand off and Wanda sucked in a breath when she saw your haphazard attempt to patch yourself up. “I had to,” you said, trying to explain yourself. “I was tired of being afraid they’d come back for me. There was no other way.”</p><p>“You could’ve come to us,” Wanda said. “The offer was always open.” It had been open since Sokovia, since you met the twins when you were transferred to their facility, since you escaped the Avenger’s discovery once and remained determined to stay alone. Except for Wanda. Wanda, the only person in the world who knew what you were capable of once out from under your captor’s control.</p><p>Your friend peeled back the duct tape again, one hand on your back to hold you steady, finally removing the bloody t-shirt you had stopped the wound with. “Is the bullet still in there?” she asked. You were staring at the television again, not even hearing the question. “Y/N,” she asked again, touching your cheek to draw your attention back. “Is the bullet still in there?”</p><p>“I… I don’t know. I think so.” Fear gripped you as you said it.</p><p>Wanda said something under her breath, maybe a curse, and set her shawl and bag down on your table, pulling her rings off as well. “Come on. On the couch. We need to remove it and get that cleaned up.” She turned the television off and coaxed you into laying down on the couch, your stomach rising and falling unevenly as you drew in several more shuddering breaths. </p><p>“Is it going to hurt?” you asked. A stupid question, more out of habit than anything else.</p><p>“I’ll try to make it as painless as possible,” Wanda said, turning on the lamp next to the couch so she could get a better view. “Try to hold still.” She placed a hand just above the wound and you stifled a gasp, turning your head away as red tendrils of light wove their way into the wound and began to pull the bullet out. Her eyes were shut as she worked and her powers trickled like water over you. “Couple more seconds,” she said. “You’re doing well.” With a final tug, you felt the blood began to flow anew. “Got it.”</p><p>You shut your eyes, mumbling a thank you, and you heard her step away, rattling around in the bathroom before returning to your side. “They’re going to take me away,” you said, suddenly, as if you remembered the incident all over again. “Wanda, don’t let them take me. They’ll send me to the Raft.”</p><p>“They won’t send you to the Raft,” Wanda said, sighing as she cleaned the bullet hole, the antiseptic barely stinging over your exhaustion. “You need help. Not prison.”</p><p>“Promise you won’t let them take me,” you said. “Promise.”</p><p>“<em>I promise.</em>”</p><p>“They didn’t see my face,” you said, repeating your one saving grace from earlier. “They don’t know, anyways.”</p><p>Wanda’s hands were light as she finished rebandaging you, each touch as soft as possible, not wanting to cause you any more pain. She could feel it each time her fingers brushed up against you, the distress you were in, the way everything in your body seemed to ache. “You still awake?” she asked, as she felt your consciousness ebb into a nightmare, replays of that night, of all the awful nights you had spent there before.</p><p>“Mm,” you hummed in response. </p><p> “You should get some sleep,” she said. “Real sleep.”</p><p>“Not now,” you protested, sitting up as you realized you were drifting off. You examined her handiwork. “Thanks.” You shut your eyes and fell asleep for a few seconds again, head resting against the back of the worn couch.</p><p>“Let me at least move you to your room,” she said. “Where did you even get this couch? It’s like a rock.”</p><p>“Someone’s sidewalk,” you mumbled. “Okay. Bed would be good.”</p><p>She helped you up as you hobbled over to your bed, and you practically fell down onto it with a groan. You never wanted to move from that spot again. You cracked your eye one more time to see Wanda standing over you, her hands tucked into the back pockets of her jeans as she stared down, the concern on her face an unwavering mask. Finally, she slipped off her shoes and climbed into the space next to you, laying down on the pillow next to you. </p><p>Part of you wanted to stay awake, you had to stay awake, because what if they did find you? You had to be ready to fight, no matter what. You couldn’t take this break. For the first time since the incident, you began to cry, real tears. “I’m going to stop now,” you whispered. “I was just tired of being afraid. That was the last mission.”</p><p>Your tears turned into sobs as the memories played back again, and you felt Wanda wrap you in a comforting hug, pulling you close to her, shushing you. “I hate seeing you cry,” she murmured. “I just want everything to be okay.”</p><p>It came out like an apology, as if she were sorry, too. You relaxed in her arms, your breaths evening out. She was stroking your hair rhythmically, almost hypnotically, continuing to shush you. “Get some sleep,” she said as your eyelids grew heavy, and even as your brain tried to fight the wave of exhaustion, you couldn’t help but feel at peace. “I’m right here.”</p><p>You weren’t sure how long you slept for, but when you woke, a blanket had been pulled over you, and you could see Wanda through your open bedroom door. There was a noise you couldn’t identify, like she had left the television on, a constant, faraway chattering. You pulled yourself up, just to get a better listen, and when Wanda heard the blankets rustling, she came back in, opening the bedroom door all the way. The television wasn’t on.</p><p>“What’s that noise?” you mumbled, turning to look out the window, every movement in your neck agony. “Who’s there?”</p><p>Wanda walked over to the window, peering out and blocking your view. “No one,” she said quickly, though her voice wavered.</p><p>“Wanda, who’s out there?” The chattering was getting louder, as if it was coming from <em>inside </em>the building now, footsteps echoing off the stairwell adjacent to your apartment.</p><p>“I don’t want you to hurt yourself more,” she said. “You’re going to reopen your wounds.”</p><p>“<em>Wanda,” </em>you said again, this time with as much force as you could muster. “Did you call them?”</p><p>“It’s going to be okay,” she said, rushing over to sit back down next to you. “You’re going to be okay.”</p><p>“You <em>promise</em>,” you said, as the voices got louder and you caught a glimpse of the S.H.I.E.L.D. cars parked outside in the street. “<em>You promised.” </em>You struggled to get up, knowing that you were tearing yourself open again, not caring, only knowing that you needed to get away. “I need to get out of here, I need to–”</p><p>“No,” Wanda said, grabbing your arm. “No more. <em>I’m sorry.</em>”</p><p>“You can’t stop me,” you said, trying to shake her off, crying out as pain shot up through your core. </p><p>“I can,” she said. The footsteps were outside your door now. “Please don’t make this harder than it has to be.” The knock came, Wanda gripping your shoulder, even now she was in your head as the fight left you. “You’re okay. You’re okay.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Just as the door of your apartment came down, you managed to struggle away from Wanda, falling to the floor as you tried to find your way out, <em>there has to be a way out. </em>It was instinctual, you putting your hands up to shield yourself, your fingers beginning to tingle as your powers manifested, your left hand dropping to your side as you clutched your stomach in pain. </p><p>But you weren’t fast enough. The door fell, the S.H.I.E.L.D agents swarmed, and just as you had moved to defend yourself, your field of vision was clouded in a red haze, distracting you long enough for the tranquilizer to sting you. Your hand was encased in the red energy, holding you in place, even you tried to pull your hand away. <em>Betrayal, betrayal, betrayal.</em></p><p><em>“I didn’t want to do this,” </em>you heard Wanda whispered as she knelt down where you collapsed. “<em>But I hope you understand.”</em></p><p>It was cold. From somewhere in the room, a vent had begun blowing in cool air and your own shivering woke you, blinking as you found yourself in a stark grey module, the walls made out of a material you were familiar with. <em>Containment. Again. </em>You were too tired to sit up, and dizzy even while laying down on the cot. It was impossible to even begin to sift through your emotions: confusion, anger, fear. <em>She had promised. She promised this wouldn’t happen.</em></p><p>Perhaps even more alarming were the new bandages on you, fresh ones, meaning someone had worked on you while you were asleep, someone had been in this room. In almost a panic, you sat up and began to pull at the medical tape holding gauze to the inside of your elbow, perhaps the old site of an IV, finally ripping it off and tossing it aside.</p><p>With shaking hands, you lifted your shirt and checked the site of your bullet wound next. Clean bandages had been applied to it, and the site was hardly the nightmare you originally found it as. But still, it had to go. You began to scratch at the end of the large bandage, just as the door clicked open. You turned, maybe Wanda would be there, but instead, it was a man you didn’t recognize, holding a tablet. “I wouldn’t do that,” he cautioned, nodding at your nervous fingers picking at the bandage on your stomach. “Simmons will have a conniption.” </p><p>Your hand fell away from the wound, but you only stared blankly as he pulled a metal chair away from the table in the room and sat down. <em>Where’s Wanda? Where did she go?</em></p><p>
  <em>She left me here, didn’t she?</em>
</p><p>“So,” the man said. “You’re the one I’ve heard so much about.” His statement didn’t warrant a response, you wouldn’t give him a response. “I’m Phil Coulson,” he said. “You’re in a S.H.I.E.L.D. base. You’re safe.”</p><p>You couldn’t help but roll your eyes, and Phil didn’t miss it, chuckling as he unlocked the tablet. “I know you’ve probably heard that one before. I understand you were a subject in the Strucker experiments. Is that how you met Ms. Maximoff?”</p><p>Your gaze shifted away, your eyes aching with exhaustion as you took another look around the room. <em>He probably knows the answer. She probably told him. What else did she tell him? Did she tell him about how I saved her life back in Sokovia? Or about the stories she used to tell her brother and I to fall asleep in the labs? What about when I told her that I’d never again be someone’s science project? And she turned me in anyways.</em></p><p>“Look, I know how you feel about organizations like ours,” Phil said. “But I just want to get some details sorted out.”</p><p>“I want to talk to Wanda,” you finally said, speaking for this first time. You hated how small your voice sounded in that moment, how defeated it rang out in the cell. </p><p>“I’ll see what I can do,” Phil said. “Can we expect your cooperation?” When you didn’t answer, he sighed. “Let me make it clear: you don’t have many options right now. There are some who would like to see you stay in containment. But that’s not what we do, unless we’ve exhausted our other options. Your friend seems to think you could learn to control your powers–”</p><p>“I can already control them,” you argued, but even that was without any bite, hardly even a murmur. It wasn’t true. You knew it. Wanda knew it. <em>That’s why she called them.</em></p><p>Phil stood up and gave you a once-over before walking to the door. “Simmons will be coming by to check on you. Try to get some rest. Maybe we can talk more in a bit.” The door clicked behind him and you exhaled, your body shaking with the breath. All you wanted was to be home, back in your bed, when Wanda was there, before she did the unthinkable.</p><p>There was a grey blanket at the end of the cot but you didn’t even have the energy to pull it over you, instead just hugging your knees into your chest and shutting your eyes. Your own anxiety prevented you from falling asleep though, and your eyes cracked open again when the door opened again. <em>I’m not letting Simmons do any more patching up. I’m fine. I don’t need any help.</em></p><p>But when you opened your eyes, it wasn’t another S.H.I.E.L.D. agent there. It was Wanda, motionless as the door shut behind her. “Hi, Y/N,” she said quietly. “Are they treating you okay? I think they’ll bring dinner by in a bit–”</p><p>For a moment, you were speechless, wanting to be angrier but instead just feeling relief. “Why did you do it?” you interrupted, finding your voice. “You promised, and I <em>trusted you</em>. When I fell asleep, was that you, too? You used your powers on me so you could make the call…”</p><p>“I’m sorry,” she blurted out. Paused. “Not really. You’d be dead if I let you continue. It was like you had a death wish.”</p><p>“So, what?” you asked. “You have your new team now. We were friends because of Sokovia, and Sokovia is gone. You can give up on me now.”</p><p>“You don’t mean that,” Wanda sighed and she paced around the open space in the containment unit as she collected her thoughts, her arms remaining folded over her chest. “I would never, ever, give up on you.” You could see the pity in her eyes as she said it. “You wouldn’t do that to me. I know you wouldn’t.”</p><p>When you didn’t respond, she stopped pacing and studied the numb mask over your face, the refusal to give in to any further compassion. Whether you felt like you didn’t deserve it, or didn’t want to deserve it, she didn’t know. You wouldn’t even look at her.</p><p>She pulled off the shawl she had been flowing over her shoulders and wrapped it around you instead, the sudden warmth a welcome relief from the chilled containment module. You hummed with contentment, despite yourself. It smelled like her perfume and shampoo and felt like home. <em>Home.</em></p><p>Wanda sat down next to you, pulling her feet up onto the cot as well and unwrapping the blanket that had been placed at the end of your cot. “I’ll see if they can get you a change of clothes,” she said. “Maybe a sweatshirt. Something warmer.” She reached over and ran her finger over the patch of dried blood on your jeans. “Something that’s not covered in blood.”</p><p>“Did you say they had food?” you mumbled, staring down at your hands folded in your lap, fidgeting as you picked at the already-scabbed sides of your nail beds.</p><p>“Mm. Anything you want?”</p><p>You shrugged, your muscles aching as you did so. “I’m just so tired,” you murmured. “I want to go home.” You looked over at the mirror on the opposite wall, wondering if anyone was watching on the other side, and who. “I don’t want to be here. I don’t trust them.” You paused. “And I’m not sure I trust your friends. And after what you did… did they send you to talk to me?”</p><p>She was quiet for a moment, thinking about your shared past, the months spent in cells then, too, someone always watching, always taking notes, the days slipping by without a beginning or an end, just cycles of meals and sleeping and tests. “Look, these are good people,” Wanda said, pulling your nervous hands from your lap and holding them in her own. “I promise you, Y/N. They can help. This is your best option.”</p><p>“How do you know?”</p><p>“Because they helped me. Please. I know it’s hard, but you have to trust me.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>final part out tomorrow! feel free to leave a kudos or comment if you enjoyed it!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>You sat with Wanda for a long time in containment, saying nothing, but her familiar presence calming you down enough that your stomach started to churn less and less, and the shaky, panicky feel began to dissipate into exhaustion.</p><p>“You still with me?” Wanda murmured as you laid into her, head resting against her shoulder. She squeezed your hand again, trying to get a read on where your mind was. “You seem better.”</p><p>You lifted your head up as the door opened, simultaneous with the mechanical beeping of it unlocking. Wanda seemed to sense you tense and she didn’t let go of your hand, even as you clenched hers harder.</p><p>“Y/N?” one of the SHIELD agents in the doorway asked. “We’re going to have you stop by the lab to get checked out one more time, and then someplace more permanent for you to sleep tonight.”</p><p>You looked at Wanda, uncertainty etched across your face, as you mouthed the word “<em>lab?” </em>with the fear unmistakable in your eyes.</p><p>“They’re gentle,” Wanda said. “They’re not going to hurt you. Probably just make sure…” she nodded at the bandage on your stomach. “Well, you really tore yourself up there,” she said, almost ruefully.</p><p>You considered her words and finally nodded, sliding off the cot and wincing at the muted stab in your side, still hugging the shawl over your shoulders, as if it could offer some sort of protection from the unknown. When you got to the door, the SHIELD agent waved over to Wanda, who had gotten up as well but was still standing on the other side of the room.</p><p>“Coulson asked if you could stay with y/n,” the agent said. “It’s better than…” he trailed off, glancing down at you and then back at Wanda, who was glaring at him.</p><p>“Sedating them again?” Wanda asked. She stepped over. “That’s what HYDRA used to do. You scared them, working on them while they were asleep.”</p><p>“That wasn’t my call,” the agent said, quietly. “But… I’ll let Coulson know.”</p><p>“It won’t happen again,” Wanda said, and you weren’t sure if she was talking to you or the agent.</p><p>The journey to the lab was quick, though you couldn’t ignore the stares from other agents, and the way many of them stopped walking completely to let the five of you, the main agent accompanied by two others, pass. You tried to look braver than you felt, standing up straight, putting up the same mask of anger that had helped you survive for so many years with HYDRA, your eyes dark and your eyebrows furrowed, mouth in a hard slash.</p><p>It was clear that Wanda wasn’t comfortable around the agents either, perhaps she would have preferred Natasha or Clint be the liaison instead, but if she did feel that way, she didn’t say anything about it. <em>She’s here, isn’t she? Not her hero friends. Wanda came.</em></p><p>There were only two people in the lab when you arrived, but it seemed busy enough for ten times that amount of people. Not like any of the labs you had seen before. It was well-kept, though lived-in, a mug of tea here, a sweatshirt tossed over a chair there. Work covered the lab benches; you could only begin to guess what SHIELD was working on.</p><p>“Hi,” the new woman said and gestured to a medical station set up behind a glass partition. “You can sit right over there, I’m just finishing something up first.” The other agents stopped at the door, not going any further, and you stepped into the lab cautiously, as if breathing could break something.</p><p>“<em>Fitz, where did you put my notes when you moved them?</em>” the woman asked. “<em>Was two tables not enough space?</em>”</p><p>“<em>I put them over there,</em>” Fitz said, pointing to where you had been directed to sit.</p><p>“<em>Oh.”</em></p><p>You said down on the edge of the cot just as the woman, who you realized must have fixed you up earlier, joined you, finding her notes. “Sorry about that,” she said. “We’re all over the place today, Fitz is trying to build a… well… never mind, that’s a whole other thing.” She pulled a tool off a shelf, something that looked like a gun and you flinched. “Mind if I take your temperature again?” she asked. “I want to see if it’s gone down at all.”</p><p>You relaxed and nodded, picking at the paper unrolled on the cot underneath you. She held the thermometer up to your head and read it when it beeped.</p><p>“Hmm. You’re still a bit warm. How are you feeling?”</p><p>“Y/N runs warm,” Wanda interrupted, and you looked over to see her leaning against one of the lab benches, her arms crossed. “Something to do with their powers. It’s why they’re always cold, too.”</p><p>“So, you radiate it all out?” Simmons asked. “And so it’s like you leave none for yourself?” She smiled a little as she put the thermometer away and scribbled a note down. “That’s neat.” She glanced back at you. “I mean, it’s just interesting is all.”</p><p>“Thanks.”</p><p>Simmons raised an eyebrow at Wanda, <em>they talk?, </em>before picking up her notes and writing something else down. “When was the last time you had a doctor’s appointment?” she asked. “I mean, a real one.”</p><p>“Um…” you glanced down at your feet. “Never?” You had managed to avoid doctor’s all these years, even the time you had the flu or the time you nearly cut your own finger off trying to cook. Glancing at the nasty scar on your thumb, you began to think that maybe that was a mistake. From the other side of the room, you heard Wanda’s exasperated sigh.</p><p>“Right, okay,” Simmons said. “Well, I’m going to try to make this as painless as possible, as long as… well… you’re going to have to promise to help me out here. Have you eaten yet? I can send Fitz to the cafeteria to get you something to eat while we talk. What do you like?”</p><p>“I’m a bit occupied at the moment,” Fitz said from the other side of the lab, earning a hard look from Simmons, under which he finally relented. “Sorry, what do they like?”</p><p>Simmons kept her promise, which surprised you, and you kept yours, which maybe surprised you even more. She checked on your wounds and changed your bandages, tried to find out if anything else hurt that she had missed when you arrived, and only gave you one shot– a <em>flu shot</em>– of all things. And you finally ate, picking at the layers of the sandwich Fitz brought, eating one ingredient at a time, swatting Wanda’s hand away when she tried to steal one of the apple slices Fitz brought as well.</p><p>“You’re not going to share?” she asked, nudging you and giggling.</p><p>“No.”</p><p>“Brat,” she said, but she was still smiling. “After all this, you won’t even share one?” You saw red magic light up around her fingers and you clutched the bag of cut apples closer to you, knowing what she would try. “What if I–”</p><p>“Nope.”</p><p>Simmons’ exam ended shortly after that, and the SHIELD agents returned to escort you to your next destination, which the scientists had referred to <em>holding. </em>It was a stark white room, the walls made up of the same material your original containment cell had been made of, but this room was warmly lit, with a real bed, couches, a desk, and even a television screen. There were clean clothes laid out on the bed, grey sweatpants, socks, and a grey SHIELD sweatshirt, heavier than you expected. Warmer. There was a bathroom, too, already stocked with tiny soaps and shampoos, and you finally got to scrub the blood and soot off of yourself, turning the water as hot as possible and watching the grit run down the drain.</p><p>“Better?” Wanda asked, when you got out of the shower, examining the sweatshirt you had changed into. “You look better.”</p><p>You nodded, flopping onto the bed and staring up at the ceiling, just as the door opened again, and Wanda stood up from the couch to see who was there. “Hey, how are you?” Phil Coulson asked, stepping through the doorway, tablet in hand. You looked at Wanda, who gestured back to Coulson.</p><p>“He asked you, not me.”</p><p>“Tired,” you said. “Um… but all right.”</p><p>“I’ll take that as a good thing,” Phil said sitting down on the couch. He turned to Wanda. “Natasha dropped some things off for you if you want to grab them and clean up as well.”</p><p>You realized that Wanda still had blood, your blood, under her fingernails, and that she had been there the entire time you had. <em>Did she not even leave this place once? </em>When Wanda did step out, you sat on the edge of the bed, eying Coulson, still trying to figure him out. <em>Is this someone I can trust?</em></p><p>“This won’t be too long,” he said. “I’m going to let you rest. I just wanted to talk with you a little more. Is that all right?” When you didn’t respond, he went ahead, glancing down at something on the tablet. “So, Simmons mentioned something in her notes here about your temperature readings. I’m assuming that has something to do with your abilities? Can you walk me through that?”</p><p>You paused, staring at your hands. “Um. They said I <em>run hot</em>. I heat things up with my hands… usually…. but sometimes without even touching them.”</p><p>“Is that how the fire started?” he asked softly, and you nodded.</p><p>“I didn’t want that to happen,” you said. “No one was supposed to be there.”</p><p>“I know you didn’t,” Coulson said, and you blinked, surprised. “Powers can be unpredictable. Scary, if you’re new to them, or if you were never trained.”</p><p>“I was trained to burn things,” you said. You remembered the trials, trial after trial, leaving you colder and weaker each time, unable to stop shivering, curled up against the glass wall of your cell, where heat from the lab had warmed the glass enough for you to sleep.</p><p>“Wanda told me,” Coulson said. “I’m sorry for what you went through there.” He took another read-through of his notes. “We’re going to bring someone else in to do a psych eval tomorrow morning. He’s one of the best, even helped our own. I think you’ll benefit from talking to him. And we’ll go from there. How does that sound?”</p><p>You nodded once, and Coulson stood back up, adjusting his suit as he looked around the room. “Get some rest for tonight. Simmons might be by a few times to check on you, and if you need anything in the meantime–” he pointed at a button under the screen “–call button is right there.” Just as he prepared to leave, the door unlocked and opened again, Wanda stepping back in, having cleaned up and changed herself, dropping a duffle bag by the door. She and Coulson nodded at each other as he left, the lights in the room dimming in his wake, something more suitable for sleeping.</p><p>You leaned back on the bed, sinking into the pillows, though the constant undercurrent of anxiety prevented you from relaxing completely. “Can you stay?” you mumbled, not daring to ask the question any louder, afraid of the answer. “Just until I fall asleep.”</p><p>“I’ll be here when you wake up, too,” Wanda said, crossing the room and sitting down on the other side of the bed. “Okay?” You had pulled her shawl over yourself again and she reached over to tuck it tighter around you, you pulling away for a moment.</p><p>
  <em>Oh.</em>
</p><p><em>It was love.</em> All of it, all around you, you realized, was love. Something you had been certain you didn’t deserve, especially in places when there was so little to go around, acts of kindness existing only in mercy. </p><p>Wanda paused, waiting for you, as your heart beat a little faster. It was too much, sometimes, overwhelming to think about, these people with so much love to give, relentless until you were ready to accept that perhaps you deserved some peace after all. Not despite your past, but because of it.</p><p>Finally, you laid back down on the bed, leaning into her, tucking yourself in close to her warmth, sighing as a burden was lifted off of you. “There you are,” Wanda said, her hand rubbing your back as she pulled you in closer, and this time, you didn’t feel like you had to escape. It was okay. You were okay.</p><p>“Thank you,” you whispered, shutting your eyes, already drifting off.</p><p>Wanda planted a kiss on your forehead and you smiled in response, the first smile she had seen in a long time from you. It was safe to sleep here. There was enough warmth to go around. Your head rested in the crook between her arm and her chest as she laid back as well, her hoping maybe you finally would sleep peacefully for the first time in a long time.</p><p>“I’ll be right here in the morning,” she repeated again, the last thing you heard before you finally rested, finally okay at last.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>thank you guys so much for reading and for your kudos! if you enjoyed it, definitely leave a comment as I would love to know your thoughts!!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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